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Scenic Drives

FM 170 (aka River Road) near Ruidosa

ROAD TRIP!

Nothing beats the feel of the freedom of the road. Texans love to get in their cars and just drive – as long as it’s not during rush hour! The state is fortunate in that it offers dozens of leisurely country drives in every one of its 254 counties. Denton’s rolling horse country, a North Texas favorite, harbors some of the most pastoral country driving in the state. Way out west, the Davis Mountains’ scenic drive, a 74-mile loop around the beautiful, high desert mountain country tops the list for many, many Texans. In southeast Texas, the King Ranch grasslands roll by as magnificent puffs of gulf coast clouds pass overhead, evidence that the beach is just a few miles away. A drive through the wind farms of the Panhandle on a stormy afternoon combines the bucolic past with a clean-energy future. The falling leaves of autumn turn east Texas rural routes into yellow brick roads. And the holidays just don’t seem the same without a drive through the rural Hill country where twinkle lights, tinsel, and evergreen garlands seem to decorate every barn and fencepost, every stone ranch house and courthouse square. Everyone has a favorite road or scenic loop that somehow represents a moment in life when troubles are whisked out the open window and left behind in the dust. When was the last time you drove yours?